Torpedo-guard.



Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETSSHEET WITNESSES:

IN-VENTOR ATTORNEYS J b/2n filwewsam,

J. F. NEWSOM.

ToRPEdo GUARD;

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16- 1917.

' 1 ,293, 1 68 Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3- v E: 1 m gg k i a WITNESSES:

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J. F. NEWSOM. TORPEDO GUARD.

5 SHEETSSHEET 4.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEYS Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

J. F. NEWSOM.

TORPEDO GUARD.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 16. 1917.

Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5 INVENTOR Jiz/fln ENeWsam, xi $01; mma

Amnzqmys JOHN F. NEWSOM, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFQRNIA.

TORPEDO-GUARD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 4, 1919.

Application filed May 16, 1917. Serial No. 168,915.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN F. NEWSOM, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Torpedo-Guards, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a torpedo and mine guard for ships.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a simple, substantial outrigger construction adapted to be secured to the sides of a ship for the purpose of support ing a series of torpedo guards. Another object of the invention is to construct the torpedo guards in individual units, and to provide means for independently raising and lowering same with relation to the ships sides. Another object of the invention is to provide a novel frame structure for supporting each torpedo guard, and in conjunction therewith to provide means for automatically retaining same in a vertical or parallel position with relation to the ships sides. Further objects will hereinafter more fully appear.

The invention consists of the parts and the construction and combination of parts as hereinafter more fully described and claimed, having reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic, plan view of a vessel showing the position of the torpedo guards and the mine sweeping attachment.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of one side of a vessel, partly in section, showing the application of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a partial plan view of one side of the vessel, showing the supporting booms and the torpedo guards in position.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail view of the traveling nut.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the bow of a ship, showing the position of the mine sweeper.

Fig. 7 is a section on line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a cross section on line 88 of Fig. 7

Fig. 9 is a cross section on line 99 of Fig. 6.

Referring to the drawings in detail, A indicates, in general, the deck of .a vessel, 2 the sides and 3 the bow. Pivotally secured, as at 4, in bracket plates 5 which are permanently secured on the exterior sides of the vessel is a plurality of outriggers or supporting booms 6. These booms are arranged, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and each is adapted to be raised and lowered in unison by'means hereinafter to be described.

Pivotally secured in the outer ends of each boom, as at 7, is a rectangular frame 8 which may be 'covered with a stanch wire netting 9, rigid plates of steel or other metal or perforated plates. These screened or platecovered frames, hereinafter to be termed the torpedo guards, are arranged on each side of the vessel, and while any suitable number of same may be employed, it is obvious that they may be conveniently arranged with relation to the ship so as not to interfere with portholes, life boats, hatches, and the like. In other words, in some instances it may only be necessary to position the torpedo guards at points exteriorly of the sides that would protect only vital parts of the vessel. They do not, t erefore, necessarily have to extend from stem to stern, as shown in the diagrammatic, plan view presented in Fig. 1.

The Outriggers or booms 6, supporting a torpedo guard, may be raised or lowered independently of any other unit and this is accomplished in the following manner: Permanently secured on the exterior sides of the ship, in alinement with the bearing brackets 55, is a pair of upper and lower bearing brackets 10. J ournaled in said brackets is a lifting screw 11, and secured on the upper end of the screw is a gear 12 to which power is transmitted from a pinion 13, se-' cured upon the upper end of a driving shaft 14, which, in turn, may be driven from a line shaft 15 conveniently positioned inside of the guard or deck rail.

Secured on the side of the vessel, in alinement with the lifting screws, is a guide rail 17 and slidably mounted in each rail is a shoe 18 which carries a journal member 19, a pivotally mounted cap 20 and a traveling nut 21. The traveling nut is threaded interiorly to fit the thread on the lifting screw, as shown at 22 in Fig. 5, and the upper end of the traveling nut is enlarged, as at 23, and exteriorly threaded to receive an internally threaded spur gear 24. This spur gear in assuming the position shown in Fig. 5 engages the upper end of the pivotally mounted bearing cap 20 and in reality serves the function of a latch, the purpose of which will hereinafter be described.

Each boom 6 is normally held in the horizontal plane shown in Fig. 2 when the torpedo guards are lowered and is supported in this position by links or arms 25. These arms are pivotally mounted at their upper ends in the bearing caps and are also pivotally secured at their lower ends to the outriggers 6. The links 25, therefore, not only support the Outriggers and the torpedo guards but theyalso serve as a means for raising and lowering the outriggers, to-. gether with the guards, when desired; this being accomplished by transmitting power from the line shaft 15.-and the driving shaft ls to'the gears v12 and 13, which in turn revolve the lifting screw 11 passing through the traveling nut 21. This nut is locked against.- rotation and is, therefore, elevated by the lifting screw to any point desired. The shoe 18 and-the bearing cap 20, carrying thetraveling nut, will elevate in unison with same, thereby pulling up the links25, together with theoutriggers 6 and the torpedo guards, to a point where they may be folded against the ship sides; the lower end of the torpedo guard frames 8 being secured, whenin the raised position, by a pair of'hooks which may be tightened from the inside of the vessel by the screw jack mechanism generally shown at 26. A stuffing-box 27 is preferably provided for each hook to prevent leakage.

By referring to Fig. 2 it will be seen, and it can "readily be appreciated, that each tor- I pedo guard should assume a vertical position when lowered. This vertical position is automatically retained in the present instance by providing a sub-frame 27 on the lower end of each rectangular frame 8. Secured in said frame is a plurality of vertically positioned rods 28, and suitably secured on each rod is a flexible steel vane or fin 29. The present drawings show three vanes in each sub-frame and these vanes are angularly positioned with relation to the line of travel of the vessel, thereby causing the pressure of the water, when exerted against the vanes, to swing the frames 8 about the pivots 7 outwardly in the direction of arrow a (see Fig. 2). This outward movement would continue beyond the vertical position shown unless a positive stop was provided to prevent such outward movement. This is accomplished in the present instance by providing a guy rope 30, one endof which is secured to the frame 8, as at 31, while the opposite end may be secured to a bit Or winding drum 16 of'any suitable construction; guide pulleys 32 and .33 being provided to support the rope at suitable intermediate points.

As one or more guide ropes may be provided for each torpedo guard, it can readily be seen that each individual guardmay be independently adjusted and also a free inward movement is permitted at all times,

desirable to clearthe ships sides as quickly.

aspossibleto permit the lowering of life boats, etc. To accomplish. this it is desirable to disengage the upperv ends of thelinks with relation tothe bearing.- capsto permit the outriggersor booms, .6, togetheri with thetorpedoguards, tobe dropped downbr low..- ered. out of the way. The releasing of the caps 20 is accomplished; by revolving the gears 24 and. as these are internally threaded zmdadaptedto be screwed up and down on the enlarged, upper threaded portion 23 of the traveling nut, the gear will assume the position where it. will release the upper free end 34of the bearingcap.

The turning of the gear 24is-accon1plished in the following manner: supported at its upper endsinra bearing bracket 37 is a tubu lar shaft 38, and secured onthe-lower end of this shaft is a pinion 39. Extending through the tubular shaft is a lifting screw- 10, which latter at its lower endis j ournaled in bracket 10, as shown in Fig. 6, and secured on the upper end of said shaft is a bevel gear ll which intermeshes with a second bevel gear 42, secured upon a shaft 43 journaled'in the rail'or guard on the-side of the ship as shown in Fig.2. Secured onthe inner end of the shaft is a hand wheel 44, which, when turned, transmit a rotary movement to the shaft-4O. The lower portion of the tubular shaft is internallythreaded and the shaft 40 is similarly threaded. Arnut action is thereby produced which causes the tubular shaft-to travel upwardly on the inner shaft 40 until the pinion 39 meshes with the gear 2%. The up-wardimovement, after meshin of the gears has taken place,, is stopped by a collar alflsecuredon the tubular shaft 38,.when engagement. is made with the hub of gear 41.

A continued rotation, after this engage ment has been established,,will cause the rotation of the gear 24:. This will then travel upwardly on the threads formed on the enlarged portion and will in this manner become elevated to a point where it will release the bearing cap 20, thereby permit: ting the links 25 to become automatically disengaged.

The torpedo guards, together with the outrigger-s 6 and the links 25, thus freed will drop (it being understood that the ropes 30 are first released) and assume a parallel position against the sides of the ship, thereby clearing the ships sides to permit lowering of boats, etc. It must be understood, however, that only one set of Outriggers 6 is released at a time as each guard unit, as previously described, is preferably independently operated. The outriggers 6 may be positioned any suitable distance above the normal water line of the vessel. They may, therefore, be comparatively light in construction as the only lateral strain transmitted to the arms is that produced by the torpedo guard frames 8, and as these are positioned parallel with the ships sides comparatively small lateral strain is encountered. Each pair of arms is diagonally braced by cross arms 45 to relieve the lateral strain as much as possible and to evenly divide said strain between the Outriggers and the bearing brackets 5 supporting the same. The diagonal bracing is of further importance as it takes care of emergency strains produced when the ship is rolling and the Outriggers dip below the water line, or when the torpedo guards are struck by flotsam of.

any description.

The importance of the individual unit construction, as far as each torpedo guard is concerned, should be appreciated as it can readily be seen that a comparatively heavy object, such as a log or a submerged piece of wreckage, night be struck with sufficient force to practically break a unit. Such wreckage can in this instance be readily repaired as the damaged unit can be raised or removed and replaced or repaired in a comparatively short time in view of the accessibility of the structure and the simplicity of same.

The pivotal mounting of each torpedo guard in the outer end of the Outriggers, as shown at 7, is another important feature, as far as flotsam is concerned, as it permits each individual torpedo guard to swing about the pivots and deflect or swing inwardly in practically every instance, when struck, thereby saving the outriggers from considerable strain except under unusual conditions. The pivotal mounting also permits each torpedo guard to be raised, by means of the guy ropes 30, to a parallel position under the Outriggers where they may, under certain conditions, be cleaned or relieved of seaweed or other adhering matter.

The torpedo guards, as previously stated, protect each side of the ship, when traveling, against torpedo attacks but they do not protect the bow and, therefore, leave the ship unprotected as far. as partly submerged or floating mines are concerned. This unprotected portion of the ship has been taken care of in the following manner: Suitably secured in the bow is a bowsprit or boom 46, and secured in alinement with the bow and just below same is a bearing bracket 47 in which is pivotally mounted an arm 48.

he forward end of this arm is turned down,

as at 49, and is ram-shaped like the bow of abattleship to support a plurality of guiding pulleys 50 and a plurality of cables 51. The downwardly turned, ram-shaped portion of the arm is V-shaped in cross section, as shown in Fig. 9, to form a housing for the pulleys 50 and also to provide a shape which offers as little resistance to forward travel as possible.

Pivotally secured in shoes 18 mounted in guides 17*, is a pair of outrigge-rs or booms 52, there being two guide tracks, two shoes and two Outriggers on each side of the bow. These Outriggers are supported by means of links 53, when lowered to a horizontal position, and the mechanism for raising the shoes, together with the links and the outriggers supported thereby, is a duplicate of the structure shown in Fig. 2. Pivotally mounted, as at 54, in the outer end of each boom 52 is a downwardly extending arm 55, and adapted to secure said arm in a vertical position or in a position parallel with the ships bow is a link 56 which is slidably mounted in a guide track 57 formed on the lower side of each outrigger 52; a bolt or other suitable locking mechanism, such as indicated at 58, being provided for the purpose of rigidly locking the link 56 and the arm 55 when assuming the position shown in Fig. 7. The look, when removed, permits the link 56 to travel inwardly in the slot and the arm 55 to swing back about the pivot 54, when the outriggers are raised to permit the parts to fold together as snugly as possible when raised to the dotted line position shown.

Permanently secured between the arms 55 is a plurality of superposed wire calbles 59, and lashed crosswise of said cables, or otherwise s'ecured, is a plurality f vertically positioned cables 60. These cables, when so positioned, form a coarse mesh which prevents a floating mine from passing between the cables. The guiding pulleys 50, secured in the lower Portion 49 of the arm 48, are mounted in alinement with the cables 51 and each cable 51 is secured to the forward Outriggers 55 in alinement with the cables 5'9. They then pass through the pulleys 50, a second set of pulleys 61 and may then be passed over the drum of a winch which permits each cable to bepulled taut and secured in any suitable manner; the cables 51 being also cross lashed by vertical cables 71 to present a coarse mesh construction.

Secured to the rear set of outriggers 55 is a plurality of cables 7 2. These are passed over guiding pulleys 73 and the free ends are also passed over the drum of a winch or any other suitable mechanism to permit them to be pulled taut and securely fastened when the Outriggers are lowered. The several Outriggers employed, together with the arm 48, form a rigid frame structure upon which the fending cables may be tautly strung, both above and below the water line, and as the arms 55 and the ram-shaped portion 49 of the forward arm may be extended any distance desired, mines, whether partly submerged or floating, will be swept aside or at least prevented from reaching the ships sides where damage can be done when the explosion takes place. The exploding of a mine will have comparatively little effect on the vessel in the present instance as the distance between the fending cables and the ships sides may be sufliciently great to permit the water itself to serve as a deadening cushion. Comparatively little damage, it any, is caused below the water line and the ship can safely be navigated in mine waters and, if desired, may be employed as a mine sweeper to precede a battleship flotilla.

The construction of the mine sweeping attachment and the mounting of same permit it to be quickly raised or lowered, when entering or leaving dangerous waters, and also permit: it to be entirely removed, if desired, in port. The lower end of each arm 55 may also be provided with a hook-shaped knife=projection 80 which may serve as a severing device in connection with anchored mines. For instance, a mine, when struck a glancing blow by the cables 51, might have a tendency to slide by or in some instances might even become sufliciently submerged to pass under the cables. The mine would, under such conditions, pass in between the ships' sides and the torpedo guards and might here cause considerable damage. The hook-shaped knife projections 80 would, under such conditions, engage the anchoring chain or cables connected with the mine and would then either cut the anchoring connections and set the mine free or pull the mine, together with the anchor, away from its anchored location to a point where it could be released and rendered harmless. This illustration is more or less problematical as the majority of mines now employed are exploded by contact and will, therefore, without=a doubt, explode before the arms 55 or the knife projections described are reached.

lVhile a specilidraising and lowering mechanism for each set of boom arms is shown, it is obvious that any other suitable mechanism may be employed; also that the materials and finish of the several parts of the apparatus may be such as experience and general practice will determine.

I also wish it understood that various changes in the form, proportions and minor details of construction may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims andthatI do not wish to limit myself to the specific design and construction here shown.

While the-torpedo guards are constructed and mounted for independent operation, it is obvious that several units may be connected in series and operated as a single unit, for instance as shown in Fig. 1. This figure shows 1 unit of tguards, and;2 units or 3 guards, connected in series, and also a plurality of single units.

By referring to Fig. 2 a stop lug 90'is shown secured on the upper side of boom 6. This lug is provided for the purposeof automatically throwing the link 25 in an outward direction when the bearing cap 20 is released, that is, when under emergency conditions, the out-riggers are released to permit them to assume a parallel position with relation to the ships side. The out-riggers in dropping cause the lug 90 to assume a position where it will automatically engage the link25 and throw the same in outward direction around the pivotal support.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In combination with a vessel, a guard, means to support the guard from the vessel, means to raise and lower the guard, and means operable from the deck of the vessel for releasing the guard from said supporting means so as to allow the guard to drop down and lie against the vessels side.

2-. In combination'with a vessel, a guard, booms pivoted at their inner ends to the vessel sides, means to pivotally suspend-the guard from the outer ends of the booms, links pivoted at their outer ends to the booms and extending upwardly at an incline therefrom, and means carried by the vessel. and connected to the inner ends of the links for raising and lowering the latter.

3. In combination with a vessel, a guard, booms pivoted at their inner ends to the vessels sides, means to pivot-ally suspend the guard from the outer ends of the booms, links pivoted at their outer ends to the booms and extending upwardly at an incline therefrom, means carried by the vessel and connected to the inner ends of the links for raising and lowering the latter, means for allowing release of the links from said raising. and lowering means, and means operable from the deck of the vessel for operating said releasing means.

4. In combination with a vessel, a guard, means to pivotally suspend the guard from the vessel, links to raise and lower ,lthe guard about said pivoting means, means to operate the links, and means operable from the deck of the vessel to release said links to allow the guard to drop down and lie against the vessels sides.

5. In combination with a vessel, a guard,

means to pivotally suspend the guard from the vessel, links to raise and lower the guard about said pivoting means, rotatable meansfor raising and lowering the inner ends of the links, and means for operating said rotatable means from the vessel.

6. In combination with a vessel, a guard, booms pivoted to the guard and to the vessels side, links pivoted to the booms, vertical rotatable shafts carried by the vessel, and vertical reciprocating means operated by the shafts and connected to the links to raise and lower the links.

7. In combination with a vessel, a guard, booms pivoted to the guard and to the vessels side, links pivoted to the booms, vertical rotatable threaded shafts carried by the vessel, nuts on the shafts connected to the links, and means to operate the shafts.

8. In combination with a vessel, a guard, booms pivoted to the guard and to the vessels side, links pivoted to the booms, vertical rotatable threaded shafts carried by the vessel, nuts on the shafts, releasable means connecting the links to the nuts, and means to operate said releasable means to release the linksto thereby allow the guard to drop down and against the vessels side.

9. In combination witha vessel, a guard, means to suspend the guard from the vessels side, releasable means to hold the suspending means in operative position, and

. means operable from the deck of the vessel to release said holding means so as to permit the guard to drop down and lie against the vessels side.

10. In combination with a vessel, a guard, means to suspend the guard from the vessels side, linksfor holding the guard in operative position, means to raise and-lower the links, and means operable from the deck of the vessel to disconnect said links from said raising and lowering means to allow the guard to drop down and lie against the vessels side.

11. In combination with a vessel, a guard, means to pivotally suspend the guard from the vessel, a link pivoted to the means for suspending the guard, a shoe borne by the link, a vertical guide carried by the vessel slidably engaging said shoe, and means operable from the vessel for actuating said shoe.

12. The combination with a vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the exterior sides of the vessel, a frame pivotally mounted between said arms a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, a net-like torpedo guard forming a covering for said frame, means for raising the arms and the frame carried thereby up against the side of the vessel and for lowering the arms to permit the frame to travel in the water, means for automatically ma t ng the frame in a vertical position when in the water, and means for releasing the arms to permit the arms, together with the frame, to drop down against the side of the vessel.

13. The combination with a vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the exterior sides of the vessel, a frame pivotally mounted between said arms .a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, a torpedo guard carried by said frame, a guide track secured to the side of the vessel in alinement with each arm, a shoe slidably mounted in each track, a link connecting each shoe with each arm, and means for raising and lowering the shoes to raise the arms and guard frame up against the ships side and to lower the arms to a point where the guard frame assumes a protecting position in the water.

14. The combination witha vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the eX- terior sides of the vessel, a frame pivotally mounted between said arms a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, a torpedo guard carried by said frame, a guide track secured to the side of the vessel in alinement with each arm, a shoe slidably mounted in each track, a link connecting each shoe witheach arm, means for raising and lowering the shoes to raise the arms and guard frame up against the ships side and to lower the arms to a point where the guard frame assumes a protecting position in the water, and means for releasing the links to permit the arms, together with the guard frame, to drop down against the side of the ship when it is desired to quickly clear the s1 es.

155. The combination with a vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the exterior side of the vessel, a frame pivotally mounted between said arms a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, a torpedo guard carried by said frame, a guide track secured to the side of the vessel in alinement with each arm, a shoe slidably mounted in each track, a link connecting each shoe with each arm, means for raising and lowering the shoes to raise the arms and guard frame up against the side of the ship and to lower the arms to a point where the guard frame assumes a protecting position in the water, and means for automatically retaining the guard frame in a vertical position when lowered.

16. The combination with a vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the exteriorsides of the vessel, a frame pivotally mounted between said arms a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, a torpedo guard carried by said frame, a guide track secured to the side of the vessel in alinement with each arm, a shoe slidably mounted in each track, a link connecting each shoe with each arm, means for raising and lowering the 1 shoes to raise itlie ar'ms andguard frame up against the side of the ship and to lower the arms toa point where the' guard frameassumes 'aprotecting position in the water, means for automatically retainingthe guard frame in a verticalposition when lowered, said means comprising a sub-frame formed as a part of the first named frame, a plurality-of angularly positioned vanes in the sub-frameadapted to be actuated by water pressure whenthe vessel is tra'veling toswing the frame asa whole outwardly with relation to the'ships side, and a stop member preventing swinging movement of said frame beyond a vertical position.

17. The combination with a vessel, of a pair ofarms pivotally-attac hed to the exterior sides of the vessel, a 'frame pivotally mounted between said arms aconsiderable distance away from thesi'de of the vessel, a torpedo guard carried by said frame, a

guide track'secured to the side of'the vessel in alinement with each arm,-a shoe sli dably mounted in, each track,,;a link connecting each-shoe with eacha'rm, a screw shaft passing througlr each shoe, threads on the shoes permitting each shoe to;serve the function o'f-a nut, meansfor turning the screw shafts to raise'and lower the shoes in the guide tracks to permit the links and the arms supporting thegu'ard frame to be folded against the ships side and lowered, a releasable connection between each shoe and link, and means for quickly releasingsaid connection.

il8. The combination with a vessel, of a pairof armspivotallyattached to the exterior sides of the vessel, aframepivotally mounted betwe en said arms a considerable distance away from the side of the vessel, aitorpiedo guard carried by said frame, ,a guide'track secured to'the side of'the vessel in fl-alinement with each arm, a ,shoe slidably mounted in 'eachtrack, a link connecting eachshoe with eacharm, a screwshaftpassingthrough each shoe, threads on theshoes permitting each shoe to serve the function of a: nut, means for-turning the screw shafts to raise iand lower the shoes in the guide tracksto permit the links and the arms supportingvthe guard frame to be folded against the ships side and lowered, a releasable connection comprising a hingedly mounted bearing cap on each shoe securing the links, a latch member engageable with the free end of each bearing cap, and means for quickly releasing said latches.

19. The combination with a vessel, of a pair of arms pivotally attached to the eX- terior sides of the vessel, a frameipivotally mounted between said arms a considerable distance away from'the side of the vessel, a torpedo vguard carried by said frame, a guide tracksecuredtothe :side of the vessel'in alinement with each arm, a shoe slidably mounted in each track, a link connectingieach shoe with each arm, a screw shaft passing through each shoe, threads on the shoespermitting each shoe-to serve the function of 'anut, means for turning-the screw shafts to raise and lower the shoes in the guide rtracks to permit the links and the arms supporting the guard frame to be folded againstithev-ship s side and lowered, a releasable connection comprisinga hingedly mounted bearingcapon each shoe securing the links, a latch member .engageable with the :free end-of eaclrbearing cap, means for quickly releasing 'said latches, brace rods connecting .the arms, acable attached to the guard frame permitting :a free inward swinging-movement ofthe frame but'preventing it from swinging-beyonda vertical position, and means actuated by water pressure-formaintaining the'frame in a vertical position.

In testimony whereof- I- have hereunto set my {hand in-the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

JOHN F. 'NEWSOM.

Witnesses Canaries P. TASKER, tHn RY Hanson.

ennies of this patentmay'be obtained fomfive cents each, .by addressingithe Commissioner of riatcnts,

' 'w ashingtongzn fl. 

